Elizabeth Street Pump Station

Progress has been more noticeable in the yard pipe. We met our project milestones on the large piping to be completed by spring in order to meet irrigation demand.

Our crews have become more focused on the work surrounding the rehabilitation of the pump station. With the upcoming warm weather, we have been able to shut down the existing boiler heating system for removal. This will allow room for the new pumps to distribute the recycle water for irrigation.

Along with the interior work at the pump station, we have begun the exterior work on the building façade. Over the next few months, the roof and the exterior soffits will be replaced and the new brick pilasters will be installed. By mid-summer, the pump station will take on an entire new look. Some of the work on the east side of the pump station may require us to modify the access ramp to the garden area. If this is required, it will be minimal and it will be done without interrupting the access to the garden area. We will provide notice if needed along with appropriate signage for pedestrians and any garden users.

Work along the south end of the job near the Congress Park Tennis Courts has come closer to being completed. The deep piping has been installed and the new electrical service is being installed at the Capitol Hill Pump Station. Within the next few weeks, we will be working on a small section of the existing water pipes in the cul-de-sac behind the ball field. We will have a portion of the street closed temporarily while this work takes place.

Near the beginning of June, we will begin working on the pipeline that will feed the Cheesman Park irrigation system. We have begun the permitting process for the traffic control and lane closures required along Josephine and 9th streets. This work will run during the summer months and will completed before fall. The route of the new 20-inch line will be from Chessman Park to Josephine. The line will then turn north and run down the west lane of Josephine and then cross over to the Denver Water property. Our work will start in Cheesman Park and proceed along Ninth Street. We will be in Ninth Street approximately one month before we move into Josephine Street. Our work there will also be about one month. 

The project is progressing well, and we have a few highlights to note.

The fence along the north property line is well underway and should be completed within the next few weeks. This portion of the work put us in direct contact with adjacent property owners and nearby neighbors. We appreciate the neighborhood’s patience while this part of the project is being completed.

Since our last update in February, some of the large pipe work on the north side of Basin 1 has been completed. With this portion of work completed, our schedule has been in a transition period while water loading from Basin 3 to Basin 1 is being completed. While it may appear that the work has ceased along the north end of the project, we will resume our activities along the north property line beginning next week. Pipe installation also will resume.

During March, our crews were concentrating their efforts on a section of pipe on the south end of the job near the Congress Park Tennis Courts. This work will be completed by April 1 interim milestone in order to meet the oncoming heavy water consumption season. This work entailed a lot of concrete demolition and pipe removal. The neighbors to the east likely noticed the pile of old pipe and rubble that was generated. That material has been removed, and with that portion of work completed, there should be little activity along the east property line.

With the arrival of warmer weather, we will begin working on the exterior renovations on the pump station. During the coming months, we will remove and replace the roof of the Elizabeth Street Pump Station.

This will be a rather lengthy activity that will take more than a month to complete. Along with the exterior soffit replacement and the addition of new windows and louvers, the amount of work on the Elizabeth Street Pump Station will increase and generate accompanying noise and construction activity. We will continue to restrict as much vehicle access to the pump station from the south cul-de-sac as we possibly can.

Some of the work on the east side of the pump station may require us to modify the access ramp to the garden area. If this is required, it will be minimal and will be done without interrupting the access to the garden area. We will provide notice if needed along with appropriate signage for pedestrians and any garden users.

Closer to June we will begin working on the pipeline to feed Cheesman Park's irrigation system. We are scheduled to begin the permitting process for the traffic control and lane closures required along Josephine and 9th streets. This work will run during the summer and will completed before fall.

We have been receiving some calls from the neighbors regarding the project and it may be best to go over some of the same reoccurring questions for everyone.

The overall project will run through February 2013. This includes all of the pipe work and the renovation of the pump station. More specifically, the work behind Basin 1 and Basin 2 along the north property line will continue through spring. This work consists of installing a new 48-inch water line and a new 16-inch recycled water line. All of this work will be on the Denver Water property. This work is critical to meeting the increased load demands when irrigation season begins in April. We would like to maintain a regular five-day workweek, but if we have inclement weather, we will need to work longer hours and possibly extend the work shifts in order to meet the schedule. Upon completion of this work along the property line on the north, the site will be restored to the previous grades and drainage.

Later in the spring or into early summer, we will begin installing a new 20-inch recycled water line that will provide recycled water from the pump station to Cheesman Park. The route for that line will exit the Denver Water property and proceed south on Josephine to 9th Street where it will turn west on 9th and run in the street to Cheesman Park. That street work will be scheduled to be done during warmer months to avoid working in the streets during potential snow.

While the large piping is being placed, the Elizabeth Street Pump Station is being renovated. The interior demolition is complete and the new construction installation has begun. The pumping equipment is not expected to be delivered until later this summer. After the pumps are operational, testing will be done using the new pumps in conjunction with the new piping currently being placed. This testing will be done later in 2012.

The Manifold Building that was adjacent to the Capitol Hill Pump Station has been removed. There will be some large conduit and pipe work taking place there over the next few months in preparation for the upcoming irrigation load demand increase.

The final details for the fence have been approved and we will begin installing the new north property line fence the week of Feb. 27. This is an important portion of the work because it will involve direct interface with the neighborhood and adjacent homeowners. We will begin along the northeast property line along the wall in front of the community gardens and will work toward the west. This is Colorado and this work will be dependent on the weather. Hopefully, this new fence will be as far as the pump station in a few weeks. Depending on the interaction with fencing operations and piping operations, we will try to work along the northwest property line as soon as possible.

Over the holidays, we were able to put the finishing touches on the large excavation around the Elizabeth Street Pump Station. The 24-inch recycled water line is now backfilled and ready for operation. We have now moved further west with the installation of the new 48-inch water line that is associated with Basin 1 and 3. This excavation and pipeline will run from the pump station to the west on Denver Water property, but in very close proximity to the fence and houses to the west. Some of the construction operations will include excavation, backfill, welding and concrete placement. We will be trying to mitigate the noise and dust as best we can, but some of the activities will need to proceed. We anticipate this work north of Basin 1 and 3 to continue into early spring.

The project also includes removal of the Manifold Building. This structure sits adjacent to the cul-de-sac by the Parks and Recreation lot near the baseball diamond. The building will be removed and most of the piping that is underground is being replaced or abandoned. An interesting note was our crews removed a 42-inch valve that has been in place since 1924.

The detailed engineered drawings for the fence have been approved and we are awaiting delivery of the material. From our early meetings with the neighbors we understand the coordination of this work to allow for spring planting and we still intend to meet that. The installation work is tentatively scheduled for February 20, 2012 and will be performed along the northeast property line along the wall in front of the community gardens. This is still dependent on the material and weather, which so far has been favorable.

We have started some of our deeper excavations around the pump station. The lines we are working on will eventually convey recycled water to parks for irrigation. We are schedule to complete this line about mid-December.

The inside of the pump station is fairly empty now. The existing piping and pumps that are being replaced have been removed. The new pipe and pumps that will be installed will not be delivered until late next summer. During the time the new pumps and piping are being fabricated, we will work on exterior changes to the pump station. This includes some masonry work, a new roof, and some new windows in the pump station. That work will be done throughout the winter and spring.

In late December, we will begin working on the new 48-inch water line that runs along the north property line west toward Josephine Street. We will be working along the corridor between the base of the existing reservoirs and the property fence line. This will take approximately three months, so the work along the north property line will not be done until April 2012.

We have been reviewing the plans and materials for the new fence. Our goal is to complete the north property fence along the wall in front of the public gardens to be complete sometime in February or early March. We will provide more detailed updates on that work as it comes closer.

Depending on the weather, we are still planning on working around the holidays.

The pace of the work on the project is starting to pick up. Since our last update, our office trailers have become fully functional with power, phones and Internet.

Crews have been inside the pump station and have begun interior demolition. The existing interior mechanical process, electrical, pumps and piping from the pump level are being removed to allow the installation of the new work.

We have begun the exploratory excavations along the north property line to determine the locations of existing underground piping and utilities. This information will be used as the new piping is being ordered. This underground pipe work will continue through March 2012. During this time, there will be a lot of construction activity west of the pump station along the north property line. All of the work will be on the Denver Water property and none will be in the nearby cul-de-sac. To reduce congestion, access to the project is being limited to the south property entrance at 1100 Elizabeth St. at the Capitol Hill Pump Station.

We are still in the process of procuring the new fence material. At this time, we are still planning on this work early in spring 2012. We will provide more detailed updates on that work as it comes closer.

Office trailers have been moved to the site, and we are in the process of hooking up power, phone and Internet access. That work should be complete within the next few weeks.

Though work progress may appear slow at this point, we are still in the procurement phase, and a lot of the materials are still being manufactured. Actual construction activity around the project is still about a month away.

We will begin working inside the pump station in early October. Work will include removing the existing interior mechanical process, electrical, and pumps and piping from the pump level.

This project is a complete retrofit, and we need to remove a lot of existing items before new construction can begin.

Toward the end of October, we will begin excavations for the new buried pipes outside of the pump station. Most of this work will be to the south and west of the pump station with a small amount of work at the Capitol Hill Pump Station.

At the Sept. 13 open house, there was concern regarding the schedule for the new exterior fencing along the north property line. Your concerns were noted, and we will provide ample time prior to that work beginning with an emphasis on having the fence to the east completed in time for spring planting in the buffer zone. Currently the fence is in the procurement stage. This includes the production and approval of the fence material as well as the manufacturing and shipping of the fence panels. This process could take up to 12 weeks before we have material to install. We still predict that work will begin in February 2012 and will be completed to the east by spring.